One of the Warren County School District’s school psychologists will transfer to a position as a special education teacher over the objections of a colleague.

During Monday’s Warren County School District board meeting, public comment was made by district school psychologist Nicole Phillips regarding the involuntary transfer of Kari Loughlin from school psychologist to teacher.

The administration submitted the transfer in response to a change in emergency permit regulations, and board members approved the transfer during Monday’s meeting.

School psychologists are highly trained professionals with expertise in the fields of psychology, education, and educational law and ethics. The state Department of Education no longer allows an emergency certification for school psychologists unless they are licensed psychologists.

Phillips said approving Loughlin’s transfer means the district will lose another school psychologist position while filling a teaching position for non-teaching purposes. Phillips said there is a growing need for psychologists in the district. Phillips pointed out that in the 2017-18 school year there were six school psychologists employed. As of last school year, the department has been reduced to five school psychologists and, with Loughlin’s transfer, the number will be further reduced to four.

The recommendation from the National Association for School Psychologists is one psychologist for every 500 students. With four school psychologists in the Warren County School District, the ratio would be one psychologist for every 900 students.

Phillips said school psychologists in the Warren County School District are already stretched thin, which makes it difficult to effectively meet student needs. Phillips said she is in her 10th year in the district and has seen, by her count, 10 school psychologists who have left the district.

Despite the change in job title, Phillips said, students would not be receiving an additional teacher since Loughlin is not slated to teach or co-teach any classes or perform in a teaching capacity. She will continue to complete tasks typically performed by a school psychologist.

No current certification is held by Loughlin, but an emergency permit currently held by Loughlin can only be renewed once, which does not allow adequate time for the completion of the required three-year school psychologist graduate training program.

“To be clear, my concerns are not related to Kari as a person,” Phillips said. “She has a wealth of experience outside the school setting. I’m greatly concerned with how the district is navigating this situation, especially because our students are being shorted a school psychologist as well as a teacher.”